The recommended age for the DockATot Grand is 8 months, but Elliott is the size of a 10-12 month old so I let her start napping in it around 5 1/2 months. She had started rolling over in her crib and wasn’t able to roll back, so she’d get stuck and get super upset and angry that she was on her tummy. One day she rolled over three times and was supposed to be asleep for the past hour, so I just set her down in the DockATot and she fell asleep almost instantly! It keeps her on her back and feeling really cozy and snuggled, and she hasn’t had any issues falling asleep since we started using it.
The grand size is seriously huge! Reagan was sleeping with it for a while too because it fit in her toddler bed super snug and she liked having all the cushions to snuggle. I’m really glad we got the bigger size because of how long Elliott is, and we’ll be able to use this for a long time between both girls.
To be totally honest, I was unsure about the DockATot because it’s pretty pricey (especially the Grand!) but I’ve been really pleased with our experience so far. My advice would be to invest in the bigger size so you can use it longer, and to put it on your baby registry (if you’re pregnant) so people can contribute money to it and reduce the overall cost for you. I’ve also seen them selling second hand and the cover is washable, so that’s something you could look into as well. I definitely feel like this is a luxury item, not something that you absolutely need but it is really nice to have on hand!
Right now, Elliott can still fall asleep in her crib without the DockATot, but we pull it out if she’s having a bad day or if we want her to sleep in a different room. I’m trying to figure out how we can bring it on our trip next month so she has something familiar, but it is pretty huge and I’m not sure we could carry it on the plane!
If you have questions about our experience with the DockATot, feel free to ask and I’ll do my best to answer!